Kerala Artworks Score High Abroad

Times of India

June 08, 2013

Who would have thought that a kettuvallom stuffed with broken chairs, pots, pans and trash, which was languishing in one of the art galleries as part of Kochi-Muziris Biennale, would fetch crores in the art market! The installation by artist Subodh Gupta fetched no less than `4 crore when the Guggenheim Museum at Abu Dhabi decided to buy the work from an art gallery at London, where it was on display.

While it is understandable that the work would never have fetched such an amount in the state or even the country, art enthusiasts point out Kerala has never really had many takers for art.

"We have good artists, but their works do not have many buyers here. In fact, their work gets sold only after being displayed in galleries in metro cities," says artist Rajan M Krishna.

Apparently, there are only a handful of serious art collectors in the state, actor Mohanlal being one among them. "It's not that Malayalis don't have money to spend; the priorities are different here. They might splurge `1 crore on a new car, but not more than `10,000 on an art work. It is not a mature market that we have here," says George John, one of the few art collectors in the state.

A major deterrent that artists point out is the lack of exposure to art here. "A knowledge of art is not something one can gain overnight. It can be cultivated only over the years, and it requires a lot of exposure to art works and galleries, which we don't have in Kerala today," says Rajan.

George, who has lived in metro cities like Delhi and Mumbai for more than 40 years, says he would never have developed an interest in collecting the works if he did not have the kind of exposure to art galleries in those cities.

The art galleries in Delhi and Mumbai are extremely organised and will have collections of masters from all over India. They will tempt you to buy art. In Kerala, all we have is a few galleries in Kochi where there are exhibitions of one or two people. I see only a few visitors there," says George.

According to him, all major artists in India, whether it be Kaladharan, C N Karunakaran, Namboothiri or anyone else, are grossly under-priced, for this reason. "The same works would be worth 10 times over in another art market."

Corporates are not willing to shell out for art here, he feels. "About 70% of art is bought by corporates whereas even major hotel chains do not buy art work in Kerala; all they buy is murals, which is the cheapest. Unless companies come forward to buy art, the art scene will remain stagnant," says George. Edgar Pinto, who runs a popular art gallery in Kochi, points out, "Even for the Biennale, no corporates came forward for sponsorship or support. All that local visitors did at the Biennale was click a picture and leave. But finally, it all boils down to whether you enjoy having a piece of art in your own space. We don't have that mindset yet."

He adds that the maximum that the people in Kerala would spend on a work of art is `40,000. "I guess people would rather invest in land," he quips.

This is also the reason why most young artists from the state move to other cities, points out artist Kaladharan. "It is difficult to make a career out of art here. Kochi has been listed as one of the five international centres of art in Asia Pacific magazine. Our artists are held in high esteem in national and international circles, but not in our own state," he observes. So isn't it a contradiction considering that Malayalis are supposedly one of the culturally evolved of all people? "Well, in areas like literature and cinema, maybe, but not in art!" says George.